1
as in oppressive
difficult to endure
kept the prisoners in criminally inhuman conditions
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings
an inhuman indifference to the sufferings of other human beings
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3
as in brutal
having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others
a classic sociological study showing just how inhuman an individual can become when given absolute power over another
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of inhuman
The mission emphasized that detaining adolescents under such conditions amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.
—
Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 23 Sep. 2025
United Nations human rights experts have said such agreements have left people stranded in faraway places, arbitrarily detained for years on end, and at risk of torture and other inhuman treatment.
—Juan A. Lozano, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
Basketball is a merciless taskmaster, demanding an almost inhuman tally of hours to perfect.
—Devon Henderson, Oc Register, 16 Aug. 2025
One kind of inhuman, intelligent, unpredictable being is simply a foil and catalyst for the other.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 5 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for inhuman
Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 23 Sep. 2025
United Nations human rights experts have said such agreements have left people stranded in faraway places, arbitrarily detained for years on end, and at risk of torture and other inhuman treatment.
—Juan A. Lozano, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
Basketball is a merciless taskmaster, demanding an almost inhuman tally of hours to perfect.
—Devon Henderson, Oc Register, 16 Aug. 2025
One kind of inhuman, intelligent, unpredictable being is simply a foil and catalyst for the other.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 5 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for inhuman
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inhuman
Adjective
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Women were crucial participants in the 1979 revolution that overthrew the last Shah (king) of Iran and his oppressive rule.—
Ellie Austin,
Fortune,
21 Jan. 2026
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When you’re surrounded by lush green leaves and bathed in natural light, winter feels less oppressive.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
21 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Grant me ruthless access to the psychological image, discomfortable mercy.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Jan. 2026
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His new persona as a fighting moderate, a Democrat in tune with the country’s shifting desires and ruthless toward the man at the top, deftly speaks to the needs of a party desperate to regain the White House.—
Jonathan Chait,
The Atlantic,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Between wading or boating into choppy surf, baking in the hot sun, and getting doused in salty spray, the elements are brutal on the human body and the gear meant to withstand them.—
Francesca Krempa,
Outside,
9 Jan. 2026
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Phạm Lockwood also spoke with Huan Nguyen, the sole survivor of a massacre of a South Vietnamese family in Saigon, a brutal attack allegedly orchestrated by Capt.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
9 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Two-thirds of the population are living in tents, struggling to survive an extremely harsh winter.—
Sarah Ferguson,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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The cold temperatures will create some harsh driving conditions, especially when combined with snow.—
Terell Bailey,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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In the film, Leonardo DiCaprio plays Bob Ferguson, a former revolutionary who must save his teenage daughter after she’s kidnapped by the merciless army officer, Colonel Lockjaw (played by Sean Penn).—
Jazz Tangcay,
Variety,
21 Jan. 2026
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Iran’s attorney general has vowed to pursue merciless legal action against the latter, including the death penalty.—
Hira Humayun,
CNN Money,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The forest had taught him that city dwellers could often be regulated by cruel and rather unpredictable codes.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Jan. 2026
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That Maduro is a cruel dictator is clear; that Trump intends more than just his arrest (such as taking their oil) is equally clear.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
9 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The strategy would give OpenAI a direct hardware presence to complement its software and nearly a billion weekly users of ChatGPT, but faces tough competition from entrenched products without deep operating-system integration.—
Charlie Fink,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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The marketing and positioning of actresses in their roles is tougher than it’s been in recent years because of the insult machinery of man-boy social media and its echoes across society more widely.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Without prosecutors empowered to bring charges against wrongdoers, judges willing to strike down overreach, legislators daring enough to demand investigations and change laws, and citizens outraged enough to protest, any revelations by journalists will fall on stony ground.—
Susan Chira,
Foreign Affairs,
2 Dec. 2025
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After that historic journey, NASA charted a new course toward Apophis, a stony metal-rich NEA that offers a sharp scientific contrast to Bennu's carbon-rich composition (and was once thought to pose a serious impact risk to Earth).—
Samantha Mathewson,
Space.com,
28 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inhuman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inhuman. Accessed 24 Jan. 2026.
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